Qigong History in the 1900s

By David Silver 

October 13, 2025

There is a misunderstanding sometimes repeated that Qigong (energy work) was created in the mid-1900s as a form of anti-Western medicine propaganda. In fact, this healing art can be traced back for millennia by many names through ancient lineages and documents. 8 Min Read

According to practitioner Ma Jiren writing in 1983, the term 'qigong' was not a word in the standard Chinese vocabulary of the 1950s. However, the term qigong is found in a chapter title of a book entitled Yuanhe pian 元和篇 from the end of the Qing dynasty, as 'Qigong Buji' 氣功補輯. He notes that the word qigong was only known widely within martial arts culture, where it was the equivalent of lianqi (練氣, literally 'to refine qi'), and also among followers of Daoism, where it was used for yangqi (養氣，literally 'to nourish qi'). He also cites the title of a book from 1934 in which the term 'qigong liaofa' is used, but attempts to locate that work have proven unsuccessful.

Tens of thousands of Buddhist and Daoist monasteries existed across China over the centuries, filled with practitioners of these energy arts who utilized these "skillful means" in their meditation and daily exercises. Many energy-body exercises can be traced back into ancient history through an unbroken Mahayana Buddhist yoga lineage. Evidence for early qigong knowledge includes timeless classic books such as the Huangdi Neijing (Esoteric Scripture of the Yellow Emperor who reigned between 2690 -2590) filled with detailed acupuncture theory and methods to adjust people's qi circulation ; the Dao De Jing (Lao Tzu, 1122 – 934 BC) which Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming has explained as a qigong text; the Shi Ji (Historical record) which explained methods of breath training.

The methods and skills of qigong were taught within martial arts lineages, often restricted to loyal disciples and the initiated. The ancient Chinese arts of Daoyin (guiding the body), Tu Na (Exhaling Inhaling), Neigong / Neidan (Internal Skill / Elixir), Waigong / Waidan (External Skill / Elixir), and Yang Sheng (Nourishing Life) all refer to what is now practiced under the umbrella term of qigong.

The Root of the Problem

In 1919, Chinese communists and Soviet Russia formed the Communist International (or Comintern). The Comintern was a Moscow-based agency created by Bolshevik leader Vladimir Lenin with a mission to promote international socialism through dictatorship. This led to the formation and direction of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and throughout the 1920s, the CCP's organization, ideology and methodology followed instructions from Moscow. This era began the repression of the traditional healing and martial arts in China. (Our own YMAA grandmaster Kao, Tao (高濤) told a story of his master Yue, Huanzhi (樂奐之) being poisoned after refusing to heal high-ranking Communist officers with his renowned qigong skills.)

The Comintern also provided support to Sun Yixian, the Guomindang (Nationalist Party) and the Huangpu Military Academy, believing that China was ready for a democratic-capitalist revolution but not a socialist revolution. When "Chairman" Mao Zedong (Tse-tung) gained control of the CCP in the mid-1930s he rejected this view, arguing that China was ready for a socialist revolution driven by the peasantry. The CCP's embrace of 'Mao Zedong Thought' marked the start of ideological divisions between Chinese communists and the Soviet Union. In October 1949, the CCP claimed victory and formed the People's Republic of China.

Rewriting the Past

In the 1950s, the art we now know as Qigong was undergoing a significant transformation in China, moving into a more scientific and medical-oriented approach and hiding many of its traditional aspects. In 1954, Mao Zedong made an effort to reduce the influence of Western medicine and ordered the development of the 'Motherland's medical heritage' (Zuguo yixue yichan ) aiming to integrate traditional medicine, secret medical remedies (mifang) and popular body cultivation practices.

The term "Qigong therapy" emerged and was promoted by the government, aiming to use the body, breath, and mind for treating illnesses like neurasthenia, stomach ulcers, and tuberculosis. This involved adapting and reinterpreting existing practices from various traditions, emphasizing scientific principles while stripping out any spiritual elements. The Chinese government began to legitimize traditional Chinese medicine, including Qigong, creating an impetus for developing a stronger scientific foundation.

The historical and philosophical aspects of Qigong were stripped away to create a more accessible and scientifically-oriented practice. Dr. Liu Guizhen, who had successfully used his family's Qigong methods to heal himself, became a key figure in promoting the new approach.

The government supported the creation of Qigong departments in universities and hospitals, marking the first institutional support for Qigong. Terms and concepts considered 'feudal', 'superstitious', or 'religious' were all abandoned, with 'scientific' medical theory taking their place. These reworked traditional practices were incorporated into broader national narratives of that time, using slogans such as "Study and develop the Motherland's medical heritage", "Allow the development and promotion of qigong to serve the construction of socialism", and "Western medicine should learn from Chinese medicine."

Two practices were prominent in early Qigong therapy, and were studied through clinical experimentation, Nei yang gong which translates literally as 'Inner Nourishing Cultivation Energy Work' and Qiang zhuang gong, which is the art of holding postures to stimulate the body's natural healing.

Medical institutions specializing in Qigong therapy began to emerge, offering treatments for various ailments including terminal illnesses. Qigong therapy incorporated elements from various Chinese traditions, but these were modified and extended to fit within the new framework, emphasizing scientific theories.

Spiritual Suicide

Due to the Communist agenda of removing all religion and spiritual practice within the country, the topics of Qigong and meditation were "edited" to focus on their material aspects, ignoring the energy-body, the spirit, and the soul. A culture of paranoia and persecution spread, and former cultural heroes such as Liu Guizhen and his contemporary Zhou Qianchuan (a practitioner of Emeigong (峨眉功) were imprisoned and eventually killed. The lack of morality and spiritual roots manifested as the Cultural Revolution in 1966, a period of intense turmoil and violence, launched by Mao Zedong.

Sometimes likened to a psychotic and suicidal break from reality, the Cultural Revolution became known as "the ten years of chaos" across Chinese society. A student-led mob formed a paramilitary social movement called the Red Guards, believing they were liberating the working class of China and eventually the entire world. Compelled by propaganda and empowered by personal support from Chairman Mao, the indoctrinated youth quickly turned to violence and madness.

Estimates of the death toll vary widely, typically ranging from 1–2 million, including a massacre in Guangxi that included acts of cannibalism (!) as well as massacres in Beijing, Inner Mongolia, Guangdong, Yunnan, and Hunan, similar to the events in the country of Tibet.  Red Guards sought to destroy the "Four Olds" (old ideas, old culture, old customs, and old habits), which often took the form of destroying historical artifacts, cultural and religious sites. Tens of millions were persecuted for being members of the Five Black Categories: landlords, rich farmers, counter-revolutionaries, bad influencers, and rightists. Intellectuals and scientists were condemned, purged, imprisoned, reeducated in camps, and executed. The country's schools and universities were closed, and College exams were cancelled. Over 17 million youth from urban areas were relocated under the Down to the Countryside Movement, not allowed to return home for decades, later known as the "Sent Down" or "Lost Generation".

Ancient artifacts, libraries, and gravesites of notable figures were destroyed. Countless historical buildings were demolished, including thousands of monasteries and their libraries, scattering the monks and nuns who managed to escape and compelling them to hide all spiritual and energetic practices. Even the modernized Qigong therapy was damned as 'feudal, capitalist, and revisionist' (feng zi xiu), its practitioners were attacked and institutions closed.

Later in 1981, the Communist Party publicly acknowledged numerous failures of the Cultural Revolution, declaring it "responsible for the most severe setback and the heaviest losses suffered by the people, the country, and the party since the founding of the People's Republic."

Unforeseen Consequences

This cultural self-destruction and repression had the unintended side effect of beginning a golden age of discovery and popularization of the amazing healing benefits of qigong around the world. This result is similar to that of the violent invasion and occupation of Tibet by communist China, which led to global awareness of Tibetan Buddhism and the Dalai Lama. The attempted repression in China has led to global expansion and widespread mainstream awareness of traditional qigong, with its spiritual aspects intact, as a profound healing art. The truth always wins because it is unchangeable, morally correct, and an immutable aspect of reality.

In the 1980s, the boom known as "Qigong Fever" began, as activist practitioners began training openly in parks across China, such as the well-known Guo Lin, who healed herself of cancer. Zhao Jinxiang gathered thousands of students practicing Soaring Crane Qigong openly, gradually gaining support of the State Sport Commission. This also led to the explosive rise and eventual suppression of the spiritual qigong Falun Gong movement, which continues to echo the cultural revolution as practitioners even today are banned from gathering in public.

The modern lineage of qigong therapy also continues, such as the well known Zhineng (Wisdom Healing) Qigong Therapy at the Huaxia Centre, founded in 1988 near Beijing, known as the world's largest qigong hospital without medicine. Here, thousands of patient / students have been successfully treated, sometimes from terminal illness. Founder Pang Ming (庞 明) also gradually reintroduced the deeper aspects of the arts, saying

"Original Hunyuan (混元) Qi fills the entire universe and is formed by the unification of physical matter, Qi and information, effectively becoming an evolutionary force. Human beings can develop their consciousness to utilize the Hunyuan Qi field to uplift their health, well-being, harmonious relationships and overall life quality."

Hunyuan refers to "universal Qi", the undifferentiated unity and wholeness of the primordial universe, a reference to the practice of aligning ourselves with nature and absorbing the abundant energy available to us. It is also a metaphor for the harmony of mind, body and spirit which can be experienced during qigong and meditation as inner peace and silence.

The thousands of exercises and routines now referred to as qigong have had many names within China and previously along the Silk Road through India, Nepal and the surrounding area. Energy meditation and energy circulation exercises were typically taught in an oral tradition or as "pith instructions" only to qualified Buddhist students. Thanks to access to more complete information, we are able to set the record straight about the true depth and history of qigong.

The above is an original article by David Silver, video producer for YMAA Publication Center and YMAA Qigong Master.

Republished with permission from YMAA.com

References:

https://www.taoistsanctuary.org/history-of-qigong

https://eah.anu.edu.au/40/Otehode-and-Penny/index.html

http://www.neiyanggong.us/nei-yang-gong-about.html

http://qigong.arkoo.com/column2.html (Google translate to English)

https://www.eastasianhistory.org/41/otehode-penny/index.html

David Silver
David Silver developed a lifelong interest in meditation as part of his Gojū Ryū Karate training starting at age 11. He later began studying taijiquan, qigong, and yoga in his 20s. He started YMAA Qigong study in 2001, and was certified by world-renown Chinese martial arts master Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming (楊俊敏博士) as a YMAA Qigong Assistant Instructor in 2006, full Instructor in 2009, and finally Qigong Master in 2023. He volunteered managing the fundraising for the nonprofit YMAA Retreat Center 2005 – 2016, which accomplished its goal of an immersive ten-year Kung Fu training program.

David works as a producer and director of instructional martial arts and health videos for YMAA Publication Center, creating all DVDs, video apps and streaming videos. He has produced and directed over 200 videos featuring Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming, Helen Liang, Chenhan Yang, David-Dorian Ross, Lee Holden, Ren, GuangYi and Lou Reed, Wudang master Zhou, Xuan-Yun, Daisy Lee, Rory Miller, Wim Hof, Marisa Cranfill, and others. He is the co-author of "Sunrise Tai Chi" and "Sunset Tai Chi" books with Ramel Rones. He is an avid researcher and writer and has worked as content editor of books by Dr. Yang, including "Qigong Meditation: Small Circulation", "Meridian Qigong", and "Qigong Grand Circulation".

David designed a product line of wooden Tai Chi training balls made of reclaimed wood, working with a woodworking shop in Maine, USA in various sizes and styles, including an "Artisan" line.

David is the founder of the YMAA Cape Cod school and teaches weekly classes in person since 2006 and also online since 2020, including a regular session for cancer patients and their supporters through the Cape Wellness Collaborative.